LeBron Discussion Reaches Hartford

Pro-Am Players, Coaches Talk King James

WATERBURY – Wherever the basketball is bouncing right now, it seems like there is one unavoidable topic: LeBron James and his decision to go back to Cleveland.

"I think a lot of people in the NBA, the commentators, are happy he chose to do that — go to a small-market team," said 8-year NBA veteran Ryan Gomes, who was playing in the Greater Hartford Pro-Am at Crosby High School on Saturday. "But it doesn't matter what anyone on the outside thinks as long as he's happy with his decision. I think he's happy, his family is happy, and I know the fans in Cleveland are happy and excited."

James created worldwide controversy — and some intense bitterness — when he left his hometown team, the Cavaliers, to join the Miami Heat four years ago. He shifted the balance of power in the NBA as the Heat made the finals four years in-a-row and won two titles. On Friday, he chose to return to Cleveland.

"LeBron has become bigger than the game," said Willy Workman, one of the Pro-Am's veterans, who plays professionally in Israel. "Everyone knows he could have gone to any team and automatically made them a contender."

Gomes, 32, from Waterbury, who has played for the Celtics, Timberwolves, Clippers and Thunder, has a feel for what James goes through as the biggest star in his sport.

"He's very highly respected in the league for the things he's accomplished," Gomes said. "It's more about how the media portrays him. You've got to realize he faces a lot of things a lot of other people don't have to deal with. He's the best player, the face of the NBA and everything he does is scrutinized because of it. And he deals with those things very well. He speaks very well when he has to address something."

The lovers and students of basketball at the Pro-Am express similar sentiments: they are in awe of James' ability and expect a lot from him.

"I was happy for him because I think that he wanted to make up for a mistake that he made," said Kevin Kirksey, a long-time coach in the league. "He's been an athlete all his life. The chance to go to Miami and play with those guys, you've got to take that shot. But now I'm thinking, 'Why are you leaving?'

"But if you feel you are ready to really help mentor these guys [with the Cavaliers], then you're writing your own story, and I've got to respect you on that. It's not how you start, it's how you finish. If you're ready to go home and say 'I know how to win, I know how to build this,' then more power to you. It takes a really big man to do that because you hurt the people there so much — they burned the jersey, wrote that letter.

"I like him, but I'm hard on him because I think he could be the greatest player of all-time. He could average a triple-double like Oscar Robertson."

James, 29, announced his decision in an essay for Sports Illustrated. Four years ago, he announced his decision on TV on ESPN and his handling of it was widely panned as self-absorbed. This time, his handling of the decision has been widely praised as more mature.

"I thought it was better for basketball — him going back to his home town," said Bobby Moore, a former New Haven high school standout and one of the Pro Am's most venerable players. "He did what he had to do. He went and teamed up with somebody so he could get his rings, and now he wants to prove he can do it on his own. He took Cleveland to the finals by himself before. Now he's got a pretty good team around him. Everybody wants to play in his home town. I'm happy for him — he's a regular man. I'm just proud of him."

While Miami had what was considered an aging supporting cast, the Cavaliers have a core of young players they have collected since James left, including Kyrie Irving, Andrew Wiggins, Dion Waiters and Tristan Thompson.

They also have a new coach, David Blatt, who likes to run the Princeton offense, which emphasizes passing, and has coached the last 20 years in Europe. Workman, who helped win an NCAA Division III championship and has played professionally in Israel, thinks it will be a good match.

"[Blatt] is very well renowned in Europe and in Israel," Workman said. "He's a player's coach — players love playing for him. A good coach doesn't have an offense, a good coach has his favorite offense. Any basketball mind in the world is going to adjust to LeBron James — center on him having the ball. You just have to let him get the ball where he likes to get it. He's such a great team player. You know, Lebron is really a European type player — He has crazy athleticism, but in Europe they really stress ball movement, sharing the ball, and LeBron's best attribute is his passing.

"As a basketball player, you have to have the utmost confidence in yourself, and the only way you can have that is if you make decisions you believe in. You can't be doing it for anybody else. He's going to be great — he already is, he's the best player on the planet."